Friday, October 28, 2016

A tawdry selection by United Nations by Bashir Goth | Special to Gulf News

The appointment of a fictional character as the world body’s
ambassador for women’s empowerment is yet another example of an institution
that has lost its soul.

When I first saw the news that the United Nations had
appointed the fictional Disney character Wonder Woman as an honorary UN
ambassador for “the empowerment of women and girls”, my first reaction was that
when the UN failed to choose a woman as its secretary-general, unlike what was
widely anticipated and hoped for, a woman who could have been the face of
womanhood, motherhood and humanity and an inspirational role model for all
girls around the world, the UN then magically waved its wand and abracadabra
enlisted a fantasy woman to celebrate women’s empowerment.